Wellington North council decided to proceed with accessible pedestrian signals (APS) at five locations in Mount Forest and Arthur at its Oct. 20 meeting but an installation date is not yet determined.
The signals advise visually impaired residents when they have the right-of-way to cross the street at an intersection.
The County of Wellington’s Joint Accessibility Advisory Committee has determined such devices are required at the intersection of Highway 6 (George Street) and Frederick Street in Arthur due to a blind resident in the area.
Other intersections identified as potential locations for APS crossings are George St. at Charles St. in Arthur, Main St. at Queen St. in Mount Forest, Main St. at Wellington St. in Mount Forest, and Main St. at Sligo Road in Mount Forest.
The approximate cost per intersection is $6,500 and the project may be eligible for the annual County of Wellington $10,000 accessibility grant.
However, the Mount Forest Archives has already spoken to township staff with the intent of applying for the 2015 grant for improvements to flooring in the archive building.
Chief administrative officer Mike Givens said he doubted there would be enough left over for the APS installation.
“Although it is eligible, council will have to determine which is a priority for 2015,” Givens told council. “I have been in touch with the local MP and MPP to see if there are other funding opportunities for the APS system and I have not heard back, but I’m not aware of any.”
Councillor Dan Yake wondered if it could be privately funded. “If there was a source of private monies could that be applied to one unit – if somebody wanted to donate that money would that be accessible?” he asked.
Givens said it is possible, noting, “Our only requirement is that the units meet the new standards coming out in 2016.”
Legislation under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) require such signals be in place as soon as possible, with the goal of an accessible province by 2025.
Yake said he would rather wait and have all the work completed at once, rather than doing one or two at a time.
“I’d certainly like to see it in next year’s budget and maybe all of the intersections could be done at the same time, instead of two one year and two the next,” he said. “I’d like to see a commitment to put it into the budget for next year.”
Mayor Ray Tout said he didn’t foresee any funding coming from the provincial or federal governments.
“There is a strong need for it, for the visually impaired and the elderly in our community,” he said. “But the way things are going with grants from the provincial government – they’re getting smaller and smaller.”
He asked if there would be any room in next year’s budget for the project. Treasurer Paul Dowber said he couldn’t make a definitive statement on that.
“I think we’d have to take a little bit more time. We’d be racing ahead to say we could do it at this time.”
Councillor Andy Lennox said that despite the information gaps, he felt they should go ahead with the motion.
“I’d like to suggest we do this and make it a priority item for our 2015 budget, instead of rushing through it right now,” he said. “We need to do both communities, I’m not interested in only doing one.”
Council decided unanimously to explore the APS project as part of the 2015 roads budget.
